No
by Ilovedesserts
Summary: Exploring the WRONG ANSWER...this might make me so mad (and I'm writing it) that I don't want to continue...
1. Chapter 1

**These characters are not my own. I decided to explore what would happen if we heard the wrong answer...Don't hate me. This had better not happen!**

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He waited until mid-morning to return to the condo. This was killing him, but he also knew his siblings weren't going to stop blowing up his phone until he got a good picture of the ring. He'd barely slept. The same siblings had been blowing up his phone all night, and he felt it was safe enough to go home now. He was smiling; here he was almost 21, and he had a family, a real family, an almost normal family. Sure, they weren't related by blood, but he had to admit, they'd grown on him. First, he accepted Sharon, and over time, Ricky and Emily too. What he didn't realize, was that Andy Flynn had been slowly creeping into that father role for years. Looking back, he'd been seeking his advice on anything and everything for a long time. Helping Andy with the proposal had been fun, enjoyable, and he felt himself rooting for the guy. The guy, a guy he'd grown very fond of, even if he had trouble showing it. A guy who had won Sharon's heart, and a guy who'd, in a different way of course, won his too.

He entered the condo and found it eerily quiet. Perhaps they'd gone to breakfast to celebrate? As he put his bag down, he noticed the disarray, nothing like Sharon would have ever left it. The flowers were still out, as were the candles, but thankfully, they weren't still burning. The table was still setup on the patio. With a pensive look, Rusty made his way to the kitchen to see if there was a note or anything. He grimaced at the idea of what could have happened-Sharon and Andy doing anything, ugh, he shivered in disgust. He jumped back as he moved into the house; it wasn't anything like he'd thought. Sharon was a crumpled-up mess on the couch, apparently asleep. What scared him was how she looked-hair everywhere, wearing the same clothing on she had on the night prior, makeup appearing to be smudged, and she was holding a wad of tissues in her hand, some even had spilled on the floor. What broke his heart was her hand; there was no ring, nothing to indicate a reason to send a picture to his brothers and sisters.

While he hated to do this, he shook her shoulder, "Sharon?" he called out softly.

When she didn't seem to budge, he tried again, "Mom? Mom? Sharon?" and that got her stirring. As she sat up, Rusty's suspicions seemed to be confirmed. Her eyes were red from crying, and she looked sad, very sad.

"Rusty?" she said with a frown. "What time is it?"

"Almost 11," he added. "What happened?"

She closed her eyes and said sadly, "I said no."

Rusty's eyes widened, "Sharon, you said no! Why? You love Andy. I never thought you'd say no. Sharon, what are you doing?"

Sharon sighed, as she wiped her eye again with a tissue; it looked like she had done that often the last few hours, "I just couldn't marry him. I love him, yes, but it's not right."

Rusty looked panic stricken, and he looked around, "Sharon, he loves you with everything he has. The guy has almost died twice, and you do this to him now? He sold his house; he moved in here with you, something you both wanted. Sharon, where is Andy?"

"He's gone," she said sadly. "He went to stay with Provenza, but he's gone. I said no, and he's gone."


	2. Chapter 2

It took another three hours before Rusty felt like he could catch his breath. He was only now able to do so as he was in his car, on his way to Provenza's house. He was going through everything in his mind, everything Sharon had said, and it still didn't make sense to him. She'd said no. She'd , for all practical purposes, ended things with Andy. Rusty shook his head because his stubborn mother didn't see it that way. She still believed things could be great with Andy, even after a no, even with that kind of rejection.

"Rusty," he was greeted by Provenza, who nodded to him, and opened the door further. Rusty stepped in and his eyes swept the room. It didn't take long for him to locate Andy, sitting on Provenza's patio, staring off into nothing. Rusty could imagine Andy felt like his life was nothing now; he knew that feeling. A life without Sharon in it would be nothing, but he couldn't blame Andy. Andy had been rejected. Rusty knew how that felt, even though the circumstances were different. He'd been rejected by many people in his short life, and that hurt; it wasn't a feeling that just went away.

Provenza followed Rusty through the house onto the patio, "Andy," he said softly, catching Andy's eye has he briefly looked up. As badly as Sharon looked, Andy was worse, some due to his utter shock, and some due to his still lingering health issues. Andy nodded to him, and Rusty pulled up a chair and sat. He noted Provenza sat back down; the two had obviously been talking out here for awhile.

"I'm sorry, Rusty," Andy broke the momentary silence. "I don't know what else to do."

"I just came from the condo," Rusty admitted. Andy nodded.

"How is your mother?" he asked.

"A mess, truthfully," he said. "I spent the last several hours with her, and I'm still not sure why she said no. I don't know if she knows why she said it either."

"Has her answer changed?" he asked.

Rusty sighed as his eyes met Provenza's, "No." Andy just nodded and lowered his head.

"Have you spoken to Ricky and Emily?" Rusty asked.

Andy nodded looking away, "Yeah, they both called. I knew you must have gone home when my phone started ringing. They both are offering to come here and talk some sense into Sharon, your mother," he corrected himself. "Sharon seems too personal anymore, even though I love her with everything I have."

"I had to sneak into the bathroom, away from Mom for a few minutes to update them, but they are as shocked as anyone. Andy, we all wanted this," Rusty said.

"Not everyone," Andy sighed.

"Rusty, your mom told him that she just couldn't marry him. That's about all I have," Provenza offered.

Rusty nodded back to him, "Same here. She said deep down it didn't' feel right. I pressed her about why she'd let things get this far, and she only said she thought her feelings would change. She said she loves Andy, but she didn't think it was enough for forever."

Andy huffed, as he rubbed his hands through his hair, "I never got that vibe from her at all. Even when we were taking things slowly, she never gave me that feeling. Any step we took, she initiated, even living together. Yeah, I was fine with buying a house closer, near Sharon and Nicole, and she suggested we look together. When I sold my house and we still hadn't found anything, she told me to move in. Now, the one time, since I first asked her out, that I actually initiate something I think we both want, everything is destroyed.

"Andy, I'm sorry," Rusty sighed. "I don't know what to say. I wanted this too. As much as I groan and complain, you're family. You and Sharon have built a family, and I've been lucky to be in it."

"Rusty, we've been talking about you, and I know he'll say the same, but this doesn't change things between you two," Provenza nodded to Andy and Rusty.

"What he said," Andy sighed. "Rusty, I'm all talked out, but I've been happy to play a father figure to you, and I'm very disappointed I won't be able to make that official. That doesn't mean that I'm not here for you, always, even as you get older and think things will be weird if I'm around Sharon. I can do anything to support you, even if that eventually means having to be around your mom at times."

"What are you going to do, Andy? Mom said she wanted things to stay normal, to still be friends, even to still date you and see if she felt differently. I told her I couldn't see that happening. Too much hurt," Rusty explained.

Andy nodded, "Too much hurt," he repeated. "I'm going to stay here with Provenza and Patrice awhile."

"Flynn can stay as long as he needs. We're meeting Patrice's realtor friend this evening," Provenza offered.

"Wait, what?" Rusty's eyebrows shot up.

Andy finally turned and looked at him, "Rusty, home isn't where I thought it was anymore. I need a new place to live. I've sold my home, planning to spend the rest of my days with your mom, with you and your siblings as a family. I bought a ring costing me thousands of dollars to essentially put my money where my mouth is, and it's over with one word. I'm not about to grovel and make your mom change her mind. I thought we'd grown together, but I was wrong."

"So, where are you going to live? You going to rent an apartment?" Rusty asked, now concerned.

"No, I'm going to buy a house. Your mom and I couldn't find one we liked; maybe that should have been a sign. I'm going to find something close to Nicole so I can help her. I'm going to pay cash, and with all my health issues, I'm going to retire and be a grandpa. I might not have decades left, but I'm not going to waste them on the dirt bags of LA, and apparently, I'm not going to waste them loving the one person who had captured my heart."


	3. Chapter 3

Yes, I know this is depressing...sorry, but just trying to flush out what would be an awful scenario. Thanks for sticking with this.

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"I feel like a kid choosing sides when your parents divorce," Rusty admitted as he sat eating dinner with Andy, Patrice, and Provenza, although not much eating by any of them was actually being done. Patrice had made a simple meal of pasta, taking Andy's "no meat" request into account. The table had been eerily quiet for the last few minutes, Rusty finally breaking the silence.

Andy put his fork down, "Rusty, you have no sides to pick here."

"I kind of do," he said. "I mean, yeah, Sharon is my mom, but I think she's wrong, really wrong. All you did was ask her to be your wife and tell her you wanted to love her and be with her forever. As much as I really don't want hear about that or talk about that with you two, that's pretty basic. She's told me in the past to look inside and figure out what is right and what I want. I know she meant that in my personal relationships, but you're a different kind of personal relationship. I wanted you to be with her; you've made her happy, and as much as I'd like to sit here and yell at you for the 'How dare you do this to my mom' kind of thing, she made a choice, a bad one."

"Rusty, she's a stubborn one. We all know that, and looking around this table, we can all say that is true of each of us," Provenza admitted.

"Louie, you stubborn? No," Patrice offered a small joke in attempt to break the seriousness of the evening. She continued with Rusty, "Rusty, your mom would want you to continue relationships even if she can't right now. She knows how close you and Andy have gotten, what importance he is in your life. In that way, there's no sides. You spend time with each parent, even if not together."

"Rusty, I'm never going to force you to choose sides. I hope you know that. I was the one who suggested you go home before dinner and check on your mom; you decided to stay. Don't get me wrong; I'm happy you are here, but don't think I'm asking you to choose sides," Andy said simply.

Rusty nodded, as he sat quietly. Andy remained silent himself until Provenza spoke up, "We should finish up here. Linda said she'd be here at 7:00," he reminded Andy.

Andy nodded and sighed in silence. Rusty spoke to him, "Can I go with you when you look at houses? I really want to meet up with Gus tonight, but if you go another time, can I go?"

Andy jerked his head up, surprised, and not sure what to say. He nodded as he thought, "Sure, Rusty. We aren't going to look tonight; she's just going to get some information, and we'll start looking after work this week."

"Okay, Rusty said, a huge concept just dawning him as his eyes grew huge, "Work! What are you going to do about work?"

Andy shook his head, "Go and keep my head down, literally, I expect. I'm going to go to work, and if my boss tells me to do something, I'll do it. I'm going to drop my retirement papers that I've had filled out for months since my heart attack and move on. I've worked for decades to keep myself afloat, and I'm not going to sink now."

"Hence the house," Provenza nodded. "We'll find you the perfect place, Flynn. You can start fresh."

Andy nodded, as he looked down and took a sip of water. Provenza's phone started him, and Rusty's phone went off almost at the exact same time.

"Excuse me," Provenza stood, looking to them, "Work," he nodded. Andy nodded in reply, and Patrice stood and started to clear the table. Andy looked to Rusty, who had silenced his phone.

"You can take her call, Rusty," he nodded to him.

"No, it wasn't her, not the her you are thinking of," he explained. "It was Emily."

"Rusty, I don't need you to babysit me, not that I mind you are here, but please, don't dodge calls because of me," he explained.

Rusty nodded and stood, going in a different direction than Provenza, who was still on the phone, "I'm just going to call her quickly, and then I'll get back to her later. She's probably been trying to call Mom and doesn't realize that when I left her, she'd finally fallen asleep." Andy nodded and stood to help Patrice. The two were in the kitchen, working silently, when Provenza reappeared. Rusty appeared only a few seconds behind him.

"That was Fritz," he told Andy, and Andy groaned. Provenza sensed the groan and put up his hand, "No, no, no murder tonight. No, that was Fritz asking if I was okay to run things for the next week. He was worried because he'd gotten a cryptic call from Sharon, asking for the week off due to personal reasons. Aside from asking me if I minded running the place, he asked if your health was okay. I guess he thought that as being her personal reason. Anyway, I know you don't want to discuss this, but I did have to tell him, the short version," Provenza held up his hand. "He's our boss, and it has to come out sooner or later. Fritz has been good to us, and I didn't want to lie to him." Andy nodded as he ran his hand through his hair.

"Well, that makes sense then after my call," Rusty jumped in. "That was Emily, and apparently Mom booked a ticket to see her." All eyes turned to Rusty, taking in his information, "Mom's running. She's scared. I don't know what to do."

"You let her fall," Provenza replied. "She took the first step, albeit wrong as we all believe. You let her fall. She's got to fall in order to find out what she's still made of and pick up the pieces as she can. Right now, you can't do anything else."


	4. Chapter 4

It was the next evening before anyone went to the condo. Rusty had stayed with Gus, not wanting to get into it again with Sharon. They hadn't argued, but she'd made it clear she didn't want to talk about it. Rusty had stayed at Provenza's house long enough meet Andy's realtor and hear his conversation with her. Andy wanted a simple home, close to Nicole. That was a must, a non-negotiable. He was looking for three bedrooms so that the boys would have a place to stay when they visited their grandpa. He also wanted a work area, a place he could work on household projects. The rest, well, he was flexible.

Emily had sent Rusty Sharon's flight information, and she was getting on a flight first thing, so Rusty had told Andy the place would be empty if he wanted to go home. Rusty had agreed to meet him after work and after class, so by 6:00 that next night, the two entered the condo.

It was eerily quiet, and Andy sighed as he looked around. Sharon was in some state alright; everything from the proposal was STILL set out, just as it had been.

"Rusty, get a trash bag, and let's get this cleaned up," he instructed. Rusty sat down his backpack, surveying the scene and nodded, as he went in search of a bag. Andy started to hastily grab the flowers and even the candles, stuffing them into the bag Rusty offered. Rusty took a second bag and took off to a different corner of the condo to do the same. Five minutes later, any sign of a romantic evening was gone, well at least visually.

A knock at the door had the men looking up at each other, "It's probably Provenza," Andy muttered, going to open it. He was greeted with a very different face, one that in a few ways reminded him of his love.

"Ricky," he said, and Rusty nodded to himself, still finishing up the trash bags. He'd spoken to both his brother and sister on numerous occasions the last couple days, and both were sick about everything. What Rusty hadn't told Andy was that Ricky had taken the day off and was driving down for a couple days to help, to support. No one wanted this outcome.

"Andy," he nodded. "I came to help."

"Oh, ahh, come in," he gestured. "You didn't need to knock; you could have used your key. This is more your place now than mine."

Ricky came in, putting his bag down in the foyer, "I know we've spoken on the phone and all, but I'm sorry. Mom's wrong, and I came to help. I know this isn't easy. Look, she's in New York for at least a few days, so stay here. Rusty and I will be here, and you can get more done if you're here even overnight than if you pack a couple hours and leave. I even picked up dinner. Rusty told me some of your latest dietary restrictions, so it's heart healthy," he held up the bags.

Andy nodded, "Well, Patrice can only put up with me for so long, so I will. I've got a lot to pack," he sighed, looking around. "Thanks for bringing dinner, but I don't know how hungry I am."

"Hey, Ricky," Rusty greeted him, arms full of trash bags. "I'll be right back," he nodded, going toward the door and the trash cans.

"Little brother," Ricky nodded. "I'll just put my stuff back in your room for now, out of the way," he said, as he picked the things up and moved down the hall. With both boys otherwise occupied, Andy turned and left the foyer area and headed toward their bedroom.

Their bedroom. No longer would he come home to Sharon anymore. He surveyed the room, and it didn't look like anything was wrong. His current read was on his nightstand, his reading glasses on top of it. Pictures of the two and the kids lined the dresser. Sharon's nightstand had her old glasses on them. For some reason, she liked to change glasses at night. She said her old ones had a different glare to them that she preferred when she read before bed. She hated the frames, so only Andy, and well, Rusty, ever saw her old glasses. Andy liked knowing things like that about Sharon, her little quirks. He put his arm on the doorframe and sighed. He didn't know how long he stood there before he felt Ricky's hand on his shoulder.

"Come on," Ricky encouraged, "I know you need to eat. Last thing we need is another hospital stay." Andy let out a grunt and followed Ricky to the kitchen where the three worked quietly and efficiently to sit down and eat. None of them could stand the idea of sitting in Sharon's seat, so it sat empty, just looming there at the head of the table. Andy took his normal spot, Rusty his, and Ricky plopped down next to him.

"Rusty said you met with your realtor last night," Ricky picked up the conversation after they'd all started to eat.

Andy nodded, "I did, and she sent me several listings today. I'm going to sit down tonight and start to wade through them. Any I want to see, we'll see over the next couple of days."

The boys nodded, and Rusty asked, "How did everything go at work? I know that had to be awkward."

Andy sighed, "Okay, I guess. Probably better your mom wasn't there. I really need the sad stares to stop, but I don't imagine that will happen anytime soon. The team was really disappointed to hear how everything happened."

"Are you still planning to retire?" Ricky asked. "Rusty told me that."

He nodded, "Yes, I met with Fritz today, Chief Howard," he clarified for Ricky. "I'd gotten the forms all together after my heart attack, but your mom," he gave a soft chuckle thinking back to the memory, "your mom asked me to wait, to see if the doc would clear me for duty again. I'm still on restricted duty, so Fritz said that my paperwork should push through much faster. I'll be able to collect my retirement, but it's going to be listed under medical, so it will be filed differently. Since I'm still on restricted duty, Fritz said that after this week, he can go ahead and cut me loose. I'll still have to come in from time to time to finish out a few things and even testify in court when needed, but you are looking at a lieutenant a few days away from retirement."

Instead of the usual excitement one might get from announcing a retirement, the boys shared a glance and went back to eating their dinner. The awkward silence hovered over the table.

"What can we do here to help, Andy?" Ricky asked.

Andy thought a moment, "Well, I need to get boxes. I'll start packing stuff tonight, and I want to get it all out of here by the middle of the week before your mom gets back. Provenza said I can use his garage right now. My storage unit is packed full, good thing, because I'll need that stuff again. My agent said that with a cash offer, which I plan to make, I should be able to close in less than a month. I'd really like to find something this week. I know we looked for a long time before, so I know what's out there at least. Hopefully, within the month, I'll at least be in my own place again.

"We will go out and find some boxes," Ricky offered.

"Yeah, ah, Gus said they get them all the time at work, you know, supplies coming in, so we can start there. Then, Ricky and I will load whatever you pack. I know you can take care of things, but we really want you to take it easy. Like Ricky said, we don't need another hospital stay. I've already done two of those for you," he attempted a smile.

"Thanks, boys," he nodded. "I think right now, I want a good hot shower. Nothing like your own bathroom shower," he sighed. "Then, for tonight, I'm going to tackle those property listings."

The boys nodded, "We'll clean up here and go get boxes."

"And then, I'll start packing for the new home I really don't even want," he sighed.


	5. Chapter 5

**A couple people have commented that the person proposing can often take the other by surprise, causing one to look like the good guy and the other to look like the bad guy for saying no. I agree. I tried to explain here why Andy is in the state he is and why there wasn't talk of an "I'll wait," or "Sorry for surprising you" answer. Thanks for reading!**

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Another knock at the door woke Andy from his sleep. He rolled over to see Ricky walking by the bedroom on his way to answer it. Andy sighed, as he looked up at the ceiling. His pillow smelled like Sharon; the whole room smelled like Sharon. He hadn't slept well, no surprise, but at least he'd been in his own bed. Own bed, not for long. Now, here it was another morning, and he had a lot to do.

He heard whispering in the hallway, so he sat upright and moved his legs so they were on the side of the bed. He hadn't bothered to close the door; it was just the guys home, and what did it matter anymore? Sharon wasn't there, no reason to shut out the outside world from their private lives.

"Dad?" he heard, as he was staring at his feet, trying to decide if he should get up and tackle the day. He looked up, a small, sad smile forming on his face.

"Nicole, hi Sweetheart," he nodded. She came into the bedroom and sat down next to him, a box in hand.

"I brought muffins," she handed him the box. "Sorry, I got you the healthy nut one, but there are others in there for Ricky and Rusty."

He nodded his thanks, taking the box and putting it on his nightstand. Nicole followed the pathway, noting the picture he had of himself and Sharon displayed right there next to his book and glasses.

"Oh, Dad," she leaned in and gave him a hug. Andy heard the boys in the kitchen, so he knew now that everyone was awake. "So, it was a flat no?"

He ran his hand through his hair, as Nicole pulled back. He shifted to look at her; he owed her that much. She was trying to help.

"Yeah," he grumbled. "I even told her if we were moving too fast, I was okay with that. I apologized for surprising her, thinking that was what threw her off. I told her I'd wait, but she said no. She said it didn't feel right, and she didn't think it ever would, she'd been having these mini panic attacks since I moved in. First, she thought it was due to my health issues, worried about me, but she said she couldn't explain it. She'd never felt it before, so she said no."

Emily shook her head, as she stared at the ceiling. She took in he r surroundings, sighing, "Dad, I never saw this coming. I thought that maybe when I heard about this, you'd not let her answer with a 'give me time' type of thing or a 'I'm so surprised, but I'm not ready yet' kind of thing, but it doesn't sound like she even gave that as an option?"

"No," he shook his head. "She's my everything, was my everything, Nicole. She froze, told me no, and after her weak attempt at explaining, that was it."

"What do you think is going on with her?" Nicole asked.

"She's scared of loving me that much," he replied. "I've thought about it a lot, and I think her panic attacks she talked about were her realizing that she was so in love with me she couldn't even grasp it. I don't think she ever had that with Jack, so the feeling scares her. I think she realizes that love is a bit out of her control, in that how much she feels. It's been really thrown in her face with my hospital stays, and the heart attack, I think, just showed her how much she couldn't live without me. At home, I think it was some of the adjusting to living with me. That's a bit stressful, even if she tried to ignore it. She tried to tell me it was the cause of my stress, but wouldn't accept she was just as stressed. Instead of realizing we were making progress and getting used to living with each other, she panicked. At least, that's what I think."

"But, she said no," Nicole stated.

He nodded, "Sometimes, it's easier to run than it is to address something head on," he sighed.

"You could fight for her," she suggested.

"Nicole, I've been doing that the past, what five years? Who are we kidding? I've fought to get her to see us, this, for years. Now, she tells me no, that I'm causing her panic attacks, so I move on," he added.

"Dad, I am just floored. We all are, all the kids," she said sadly. "Look, get up, get a shower, and I'll go out and talk to the guys. We can all have breakfast. Do you have to be at work? You mentioned your retirement stuff was processing."

He shook his head, "Not this morning. I'm meeting with Linda, the realtor at 10:00, and I plan to go into work after lunch. Both boys asked to go look at houses with me. Rusty has a class then, and Ricky and I are going to get lunch before I go to work. I will be there a few hours, and then depending on how house hunting goes, I might meet up with Linda again later."

"Do you want me to come? I can change my schedule," she offered.

"No," he shook his head. "You go to work and take care of the boys."

She nodded, "Okay, dinner later this week-the boys want to see you. I haven't said anything to them yet," she added.

"I will," he told her. "It's my mess," as he stood to head to the bathroom.

By late afternoon, Andy was exhausted. He'd had a full day, starting with questions from three of the five kids. He appreciated the kids and team being there for him, but really now, he wanted a moment alone. He checked in with Provenza after he'd finished the lingering reports he had on his desk and told him he'd talk to him later.

"You meeting up with Linda again tonight?" Provenza asked, drawing the attention of the team.

"Yeah," he nodded. "We looked at two houses before lunch. Rusty went to class, and Ricky and I went to lunch to talk them over. I'm meeting with both boys and Linda tonight again. I think she has two more homes to look at tonight."

"Any leads, Lieutenant?" Julio inquired.

"One," he nodded. "It's on the list tonight. We'll see. Look, I'm going to clear my head if you don't need anything more?" he asked Provenza. Provenza shooed him off.

"Night Lieutenant," Amy offered, and Wes nodded, as Andy walked by their desks.

"This is so sad," Buzz said to the group once Andy had left.

"It is," Provenza said as he stapled a set of papers. "Flynn is doing okay at least. If you think it's sad now, wait until our heartbroken Captain comes back. She doesn't even realize how heartbroken she is yet, mainly because it was mostly her doing, and she also doesn't realize that the source of that heartbreak is going to be out of her life completely by the time she gets back. Settle in everyone; we're no longer cops. We're idiots stuck in the middle of a soap opera."


	6. Chapter 6

It was late when Andy got home, or rather back to the condo. He'd taken a long walk on the beach before meeting with Linda and the boys to look at two more homes. One fit, and hopefully, if his offer went through, he'd have a new home in a few short weeks. He'd done a lot of thinking as he walked in silence on the beach, their beach. He couldn't steer the car toward any other beach; even if Sharon wasn't with him, he still wanted to be on that beach.

The house hunting had been tiresome, but productive, and the boys agreed he'd found the right house. The boys seemed to sense his exhaustion because they bowed out of dinner, so instead, he and Linda had dinner where she worked on his offer. He hoped to hear soon on a response; he needed something to look forward to. Now that he was back home, or back at the condo, he saw what the boys had been doing while he'd been at dinner with Linda. They had loaded up and taken out the boxes he had ready, along with half his suit collection. Andy had thought about arguing with them when they told him they were going to do the lifting and moving, but he knew they were right. He was old and broken, in more ways than one, and the boys wanted to do something to help. It looked like they had been busy filling up Provenza's garage.

The condo was quiet, and he sunk onto the bed, rubbing his hands over his eyes. He knew he should get up and get ready for bed, but he was too tired to move. Instead, he drifted off to sleep.

A rustling shook him awhile later. He cracked an eye open to find Rusty staring into his face, "Andy, your realtor is on the phone," he said, hand outstretched, Andy's phone in hand. Andy left around, even though he could see his phone in Rusty's hand.

"What time is it?" he asked.

"9:30 AM," Rusty said. "You were sleeping hard. Sorry to wake you, but your phone was by the front door and ringing. I answered it when I saw Linda's name come up. Here," he handed Andy the phone. Andy took the phone and sat up, rubbing his eye as he answered the phone. Rusty slowly backed out of the room, giving Ricky a thumbs' up as he heard the conversion. It appeared the deal was going to go through.

Andy made his way to the kitchen a few minutes later, "Morning guys," he nodded to the boys. "Thanks for moving that stuff last night. I'm sorry I fell asleep before you got home."

"That's okay," Rusty waved him off, "It was pretty funny getting Provenza back for storing all his stuff here when he had Patrice move in," Rusty grinned. "You should have seen his face when he saw your suit collection. He kept complaining about no cop should have that many suits, calling you Barbie's Ken doll. He about lost it when we told him that was only half your suit wardrobe."

Ricky grinned, "Yeah, he's a funny guy. Names for everything and everyone."

Andy nodded, "That's Provenza."

"So, Andy, good news on the house?" Ricky asked.

'Yeah," he offered his first small smile in days, "I got the house. With everything, they took my offer as is. The cash offer helped a lot too. Linda thinks that within three weeks, I should be able to take possession, as long as the inspections are okay."

"That's good to hear, Andy," Ricky said encouraging him. "I'm glad I got to see the house."

"Me too, both of you," he nodded to the boys. "You know you are welcome there anytime. Ricky, I know you don't get home much, but you are always welcome. Rusty, I hope you won't be a stranger. You and Gus," he nodded.

Rusty nodded back, "I'll be around. You'll want to get rid of me. Never thought I'd be begging to spend my nice domestic time with Andy Flynn," he grinned. Andy chuckled.

"Well, Andy, I'm going to head back home today," Ricky explained. "I know Mom is supposed to be home in two days, and I need to get back to work. What can I do this morning before I get on the road?"

"I have a few more boxes to pack, and then the rest of my clothes," Andy said. "I would like to be back at Provenza's tomorrow, so this will be my last night here. I don't want to be here if your mom does something dumb like come home early, not that she ever does anything dumb," he sighed. "So, if we could get that stuff moved this morning, I am going to work after lunch again and meeting with Linda after work to take care of a lot of paperwork."

The boys nodded now that a plan of attack had been set for the day.

By the afternoon, Andy had a small spring in his step back as he got to work, "Flynn, I have a bone to pick with you," Provenza started in on him after he got situated at his desk. The whole team looked up to check out the banter.

"What is it, Old Man?" he asked.

"How is it humanly possible to have that many suits? Those boys of yours brought over load after load of suits last night. Then, Rusty, grinning like an idiot, tells me the closet at the condo is still half full of suits. You're not some GQ model!"

The team chuckled; laughter felt good after the last few days. They knew it would be short lived; Andy was retiring, and Sharon was returning to work, so they were going to enjoy it while they could. The team would never be the same again.

Andy, not interested in Provenza's antics, simply said, "If you think I have a lot of suits, I have twice as many sets of suspenders. Don't worry; I'll let you borrow some, roomie."

Instead of responding, Provenza just made a face at Andy and looked back down at his work. The team chuckled.

"Sir, we wanted to do a retirement party for you," Julio spoke up a few minutes later. "With the current circumstances, we decided it might be best to wait, but we wanted to check with you."

Andy nodded to each person as he looked around. They were all offering smiles to him, "Thank you, all," he said as he cleared his throat. "I'm deeply touched. Tell you what-I should close on my house in a few weeks. I know it's supposed to be my party that you throw, but why don't we do a barbecue then? Sort of a housewarming and retirement thing all in one."

"I'm only coming if you have real meat to barbecue, none of this vegetarian stuff," Provenza scoffed.

Mike spoke up, "Andy, that sounds perfect, and I will volunteer to bring the meat."

"I'll bring the cake," Amy held up her hand.

"I'll bring the drinks," Wes smiled. "All kinds," he clarified to Provenza.

"I make this great bean dip; I will bring it," Buzz offered.

"I'll come," Provenza said. "That's all you'll get."

"I've been teaching Mark how to help in the kitchen. Maybe we'll bring some potato salad or something, but we'll bring a dish too, and a salad for you, Sir," he said.

Andy nodded, "Thanks everyone. By then, I'll be ready to bring some laughter and joy into my home."


	7. Chapter 7

"How is she?" Andy broke the silence that had fallen at the dinner table, looking to Provenza who had just finished telling Andy about the latest case.

Provenza met Patrice's gaze, and he sighed as he put his napkin down on the table, "You'll think I'm not being honest, but I don't know. You know she can hide her emotions if she wants to. She's not well, that much I can tell you, but she barely said two words to me, to anyone today. I can tell you she was shocked. Fritz, knowing what has been going on, almost pounced on her when she got off the elevator today, telling her he needed to meet with her ASAP this morning. So, she went straight to his office, I think to her it was some sort of relief she wouldn't see you right away because no one, before today, had told her you retired. Fritz took her into his office to tell her that and update her on everything. Wish I could have been a fly on the wall for that," he sighed. "When she finally came into the office, she had a very lost look on her face, barely giving any of us even a glance, and instead of going in her normal door, she went in the side one, by your desk, not before running her hand over the back of your chair like she used to do when you were out on medical leave. I updated her on things about a half hour after she got settled. After that, none of us spoke to her unless she spoke to us first."

Andy wiped his mouth, as he chewed, "Did she say anything when you went in to update her?"

"When I walked in, her gaze met mine, and she closed her eyes. You could tell every ounce of strength she had was used to fight back the tears. I handed her the file I had with all the updates, explaining them. When I finished, I stood to leave because I could tell she wanted business as usual, wanted to have time to process everything she'd learned in the last hour. After all my updates and such, she just said 'thank you,' and I can assure you that wasn't a thank you for the paperwork. No, I was about at the door, and it was very subtle, but it was definitely a thank you for taking in your sorry self," Provenza recapped.

"How did she look?" Andy asked.

"Oh, Andy, are you sure you want to revisit all this?" Patrice asked. "It's been almost 10 days now. I know she's just getting back to work, but you can't heal if you keep reliving all this."

"I'm sure, Patrice. I will always love her, and I want to know she's okay," he said.

Provenza nodded as he listened and looked to Andy, "She looks terrible. Probably hasn't slept in 10 days. At exactly 6:00, she walked out of her office, said goodnight, and told us all to go home. I'm not sure she'd been to the condo yet, maybe right off the plane. Her normal perfect clothing was anything but that today."

Andy grunted, "Knowing her, she hasn't slept. Rusty said her flight got bumped, so yeah, she probably did come from the airport."

"So, going home tonight-" Provenza started.

"Will be a rude awakening," Andy sighed.


	8. Chapter 8

"Guys, you can put those boxes over there," Andy directed as he walked out onto the front lawn. It was moving day for him, yet again. He'd closed on the house finally, yesterday, just 24 days after putting in an offer, just under 30 days since he'd proposed to Sharon and been rejected. It's also been that same amount of time since he had spoken to Sharon. He'd seen her briefly, although he was sure she didn't know he saw her. Andy had been testifying in court, something he expected he'd be doing on and off for the next couple years, and it had been a packed courtroom. Gang stuff always was, and while he knew Sharon wasn't needed in court, he knew she was aware he was going to testify. That had to come from Rusty, who'd sat behind Andrea as Andy went through his statement on the witness stand. He caught Rusty's eye every now and then, and as he was finishing up, he glanced up to see Sharon scurrying out of the courtroom, obviously there just for that, and obviously trying to be evasive. That was the only time he'd seen her.

He missed her; he wasn't going to deny that. He missed everything about her, even her stubbornness. Rusty said she wasn't doing well; he had been stopping by Provenza's house on a regular basis, usually on a night both Gus and the team were working. With the schedule Major Crimes kept, that had Rusty stopping by at least once a week to check on Andy. Sometimes, they went for dinner, and sometimes, they just took a walk around the block. Andy hadn't asked Rusty about Sharon; he remembered the "feel like my parents got divorced and I have to pick sides" comment he'd made, and Andy promised himself he wasn't going to put Rusty in the middle of things. Still, Rusty had been forthcoming, telling him that Sharon wasn't well. He admitted even to finding her asleep in the master bedroom closet one night, sleeping under the hanging area where Andy's stuff had been. He recounted the information Emily had supplied; Sharon's trip had been a depressing one, and she'd spent most of it crying. Emily was worried about her, as Ricky and Rusty were too, but all three knew she had made a choice. Her mind had decided, and her heart was catching up. Andy didn't want to discuss things, but he reminded Rusty that even when he'd said he would give her more time, an answer wasn't needed right then, Sharon had made all the decisions leading to this domino effect.

Now, as he was moving in all his things, he looked around to see those who had come to help. Buzz and Wes were moving in his mattress; he'd bought a new one, as he put his old master bedroom in one of the guest rooms. He'd balked at the delivery charges, choosing instead to rent a small moving truck for the day, and the guys had volunteered to pick up the furniture he'd bought. He'd bought quite a lot too. What he did have from before, most of it reminded him of Sharon. His couch-he'd spent many nights curled up on it with Sharon at his side, and well, even more than just cuddled up. He'd replaced all his bedroom furniture too, and all the new things had an oddly familiar feeling to him, but were new. New appliances were arriving later in the afternoon, as the house he bought had been under major renovation. He'd secured the new appliances in the deal, and while he hated he'd bought exactly the stuff Sharon had at the condo, he had to admit they were the best appliances. He'd done his homework, just as Sharon had when she bought her appliances too. Like many things, he felt using them would bring an odd sense of comfort.

Andy snapped out of his daze and noticed that Mike and Buzz were now in his living room, unpacking his television. Both promised to have his system up and running by the afternoon. He had no doubt; the two could do about anything electronic related in all of Los Angeles, so he was sure his television and Wi-Fi would be going very soon. Amy was hanging curtains for him, ones he bought with the new furniture. Cooper was helping her; both were tall, so that was a good project for them. Julio and Mark were in the kitchen unpacking his stuff. He'd given away most of his kitchen things-plates, cookware, utensils, so all of that was new too. It sort of felt good, new stuff for a new start. Rusty and Gus were unpacking his closet. They'd hauled all the wardrobe boxes into the house for him, and they were really just pulling the suits and such out of the boxes and hanging in the closet. Andy would reorganize later. The bedroom he was going to use for his grandsons, that was untouched. It was big enough to fit his desk as well as a set of bunk beds. That still left him a regular guest room for when his son came to town. Things on that front had improved quite a bit while he'd been in the hospital, not once, but on both occasions, so he was happy to have an extra room for guests. The boys' room, he was saving that for later. Yes, the guys today would unload the bunk beds and set up that much, but Andy had plans to take the boys shopping in a few days to outfit the room. He could see a sports' theme coming soon, and he knew they were excited to decorate their room at "Grandpa's House." Now, as he shook himself out of his haze, he continued working. Andy, he was busy, going from one thing to another, and right now, he was very grateful for friends.

"Flynn, your fridge here yet?" he heard that irritated comment coming from his one friend who was doing everything in his power NOT to help. Andy turned to find Provenza in the front doorway, a framed Dodger photo in his hand.

"Do you see new appliances yet?" he barked.

"My beer needs to chill," Provenza explained. "You want me doing all this heavy lifting-I need some nourishment."

"Heavy lifting? That's the heaviest thing you've held all day," Andy complained. As he was yelling at Provenza, a car pulled up, and Andy turned, a smile to his face.

"Hi Sweetheart," he smiled, as he kissed Nicole's cheek when she got out of the car.

"Hi Dad. I can't stay; the boys are at a birthday party, but I wanted to drop by with lunch for everyone," she said as she pulled out bags containing salads and sandwiches. "I love that you are five minutes away."

"Me too, but I was before," he sighed.

"I know, but well, at least you found a home just as close as you were, and now, no parking garage and elevator," she added.

"Yeah," he sighed. "Thanks for the food."

"You're welcome. I'll bring the boys by tomorrow. I know you must be overwhelmed with everything," she said.

"Yeah, I am," he nodded. "Keeps my mind focused, though."

"True, but don't forget, dinner at my house in two days. I invited Melody over so you can meet her."

"Okay," he waved her off. "Fine. See you then," and Nicole drove off.

"Andy?" he heard and turned to see Rusty and Gus behind him. "Hey, sorry we've got to go. Gus just got called into work earlier than planned. We hate to bail on you," Rusty explained.

Andy patted Rusty on the back, "It's fine. Thank you for helping, both of you. Don't be a stranger," he told them.

"We won't," Gus added. "I'm planning to come and cook you and Rusty dinner next week. Deal?"

"I'm done making deals," he nodded, "but count on it," he patted Gus' back and nodded to them as they left. He spent the rest of the day with his team, his friends, unpacking his past as he setup for his future.

The day was a whirlwind, and by the evening as the sun was going down, Andy was home. It was quiet, and it was a mess, but it was home. He settled on his back porch, listening to the new sounds his backyard seemed to give off, closing his eyes, and trying to will himself to be happy.


	9. Chapter 9

**Okay, this is going to have to hold everyone for at least a day. Out of town just tomorrow, so...**

 **Can I just say that I'm so glad this story isn't really what happened on the show? Plus, Ricky is even more awesome on the show than I could ever portray him in my story :)**

* * *

"Boys, slow down!" Andy yelled to his grandsons as they almost plowed over him to reach the front door. He knew he was old before he agreed to start watching the boys on a more regular basis. Now, every time they were at the house, he felt older and older.

"Grandpa!" they yelled as they flung open the front door. Andy was a little slow on the draw, almost limping as he followed the boys to the front door. He'd excused himself from the kitchen, where he'd been getting them all something to drink. Upon hearing the doorbell, the boys had flown in from the backyard, past Andy in the kitchen, and he was still playing catch up.

"Grandma Sharon!" he froze as he heard the boys squeal in delight. It had been now six weeks since the night, and he hadn't seen Sharon, except as she'd darted out of court the one day. In fact, he didn't think she knew where he lived. He knew the team had been tight lipped about it; none of them would have said anything, and from his talking to Rusty, Gus, Emily, and Ricky, they weren't going to talk to Sharon about it either.

As he collected himself and made his now, calm, cool, and collected walk to the front door, he schooled himself and took a deep breath before he began, "Boys, what have I told you about answering the door on your own?"

"It's just Grandma Sharon, Grandpa. We haven't seen her in so long!" the both almost yelled to him, jumping up and down with excitement.

"Andy, do you need help with the drinks?" he heard and froze, as he turned to the other voice in the house. Sharon's gaze moved from the boys to the voice, and as he turned, he could see almost see the steam coming off Sharon as he watched her expression change.

"Melody, could you take the boys out back for a minute?" he pleaded, the look in his eye to her conveying so much. Melody was young, petite, blonde, and beautiful with a great sense of style, all the things that would irritate Sharon to no end.

"Ahh, sure," she said. "Boys, let's go," as she held out her hand.

"Grandma Sharon, don't leave without seeing us again," Andy heard, not registering which kid said it, and the boys bounced off with Melody. Andy turned back to Sharon now that the boys and Melody were out of sight, and he could tell Sharon was ready to walk away. She turned.

"I'm sorry to have stopped by and interrupted your day," she said, huffing off.

Andy rolled his eyes, "Sharon-"

Sharon whipped back around, "Really, Andy? How old is she, 25? Honestly!"

"For someone who is sure she doesn't want me in her life, you sure are jealous," he stated, crossing his arms.

"I am not jealous," she stomped her foot. He eyed her, and she admitted defeat when she rolled her eyes.

"Why did you come here, Sharon? How did you even find my house?" he asked, arms still crossed.

"Obviously, it's not important," she waved him off, clutching her keys. "Tell the boys I'm sorry I didn't get to see them," as she started down the pathway to her car.

Andy let out a low rumble before he spoke, "Sharon, Melody is my decorator. She's a friend of Nicole's. You know that while I have a good fashion sense, I have no eye for decorating." Sharon stilled her movements, but she didn't want to turn around. Andy continued, "You know me better than that. I've loved you for years. Do you think that's really who I am? Ready to tell me why you are here and how you found me? The captain I know would not have broken protocol and looked up my address, and I know that neither the team nor any of our kids told you were I had moved. I spoke to Emily a couple days ago, and she asked all about the place, and she promised this time, unlike my dust up with the car, not to spill the secret. I also know I took you off my cell phone locator when I got rid of our family plan, so fess up."

Andy could see Sharon look up to the sky, and he figured she was collecting herself again. He barely heard it, but he was pretty sure he did hear her, "I can't believe you went out and bought this house." Andy could tell the moment she had let go of the jealousy act; she dropped her purse on her hand, so that it was now resting on her wrist, and she slowly turned around. He stood rooted on the front steps, arms still crossed.

"You still haven't answered my question-how did you find me, Sharon?" he asked. "Not to mention, what was I supposed to do? I needed a place to live."

Sharon took two steps toward him and crossed her own arms, "I may have followed Rusty here the other day," she pursed her lips as she refused to look up at him, hating she had to admit that to Andy, but she knew he was one of the best detectives around and would think about her finding him right away. She continued on, not before wiping her face. Andy knew she wasn't looking at him because she was probably crying, "I didn't realize you were talking to all the kids until Rusty slipped up the other day and said something about Ricky's visit. He admitted all three of them talk to you all the time, but he also said he didn't want to get in the middle of what he called 'divorced parent mess.' So, I followed him here. I was desperate. I knew I couldn't call you, and you've gone and retired. I followed Rusty. It took me until I was a block away before it registered what house you had bought, and I cried the rest of the way here," she sniffled.

Andy let out his breath, as he shook his head, "Sharon, this was always my favorite house," he dropped his hands. "Turns out, it never could sell, so the owner had to rid it of its mold. Then, it still wouldn't sell because of Provenza's media coverage from the dead body. So, yeah, I bought the mold house. Now, no mold, and I'm still working on a few rooms that were in really bad shape, but it's a fantastic house, like new now with the walls and everything replaced."

Sharon looked up at Andy, meeting his eyes finally, and she was definitely crying, "This was supposed to be our house," she said between tears.

He nodded, closing his eyes, "I know. You didn't want the 'our' part. You didn't even want to think about it; I just got a flat out 'no, not happening.' This house is everything I wanted, but without the person I wanted in it."

She sighed, shaking her head, "I can't believe the kids, the team kept this from me."

He shrugged, "The team-I didn't have to ask; they don't want to be in the middle of this. I asked all our kids not to say anything. Quite frankly, none of them want to be in the middle of this."

Sharon nodded as she turned away, "I'm going to get going," she said as she shifted her purse back to her shoulder.

"Sharon, want to tell me why you came by today? If you followed Rusty the other day, you could have done this then-interrogated me about the house. There's a reason you came back. Why don't you come inside and tell me? I hate to be the new guy on the block airing out his problems on the front lawn. Last thing either of us need is a domestic dispute call to the LAPD. That'd go over really well. I'll have Melody take the boys home; she picked them up at Nicole's on her way here. She brought the boys over to help decorate their room, and you caught us on a break. They have been begging to go swimming, and the pool is finally ready," he explained.

"I don't think I can come inside," she shook her head, still not looking at him.

"Fine. Your choice. Inside or out on the patio, where you can stare at the pool where the murder took place."

* * *

 **A/N-Ye of little faith! Several were trying to convince me not to let Andy get involved with Melody...ahhh, our sweet lieutenant only has his heart for one person, even if she's turned him now. Loved the feedback, though! :)**


	10. Chapter 10

Sharon hadn't answered Andy when he'd given her the option of the patio or the living room to talk. He could see she was almost in shock; coming here had really rattled her. So, he walked to her, put his hand on her elbow, and he escorted her inside to his living room, where he had her sit.

"I'll be right back. I'm going to talk to Melody and reschedule with the boys. Give me a minute," he nodded, and she gave a blank nod, as she took in his new home. She wasn't sure how much time had passed, but soon, she heard the trampling of feet running toward her. That snapped her out of her state.

"Grandma Sharon!" both boys exclaimed, throwing their arms around her. "We missed you. Grandpa says that he has to talk to you, so we're coming back later," she heard, still not registering which one was talking to her.

"You boys are getting so big," she managed to smile at them, as she looked to them. "I have missed you both very much. I promise I will talk to your mom about seeing you soon," she offered a weak smile. Andy walked back into the room, then.

"Boys, Melody is already at the car. She called your mom, and we'll get your room all decorated soon, ok?" he offered. The boys hugged him, and he walked them to the car, before coming back in the house.

Sharon's head snapped up when she heard Andy walk in and shut the door, "Where did you get all this stuff?" she asked, dumbfounded.

He shrugged as he gave a vague answer, "The furniture store."

She rolled her eyes, as she still had tears in them, "I mean, we looked at all this stuff before. When we were looking at houses, we looked at furniture a little too. This, Andy, this is everything we had picked out."

"Yeah," he said taking a deep breath, "It is. I said, as you know, I have terrible decorating taste, so when it came time to decorate, I needed furniture. If you recall, I did get rid of most everything I owned. So, I went back to the furniture store and bought all this. I knew it was in good taste. That's why I hired Melody to help too; she's helped me locate some things."

"The artwork? Did she help you locate that? Much of this is the same artist I have in the condo," she sighed, looking around.

He shrugged, "I like the pieces, and it felt like home. Melody asked me upfront what I wanted in my house, as far as the decorating and all. I told her I wanted it to feel like home. That's vague and very personal to everyone, and this is what I wanted. It feels like home," he sighed, as he sat in the armchair, angled toward her on the couch. She had her elbows on her knees, resting her head in her hand, running her hands over her eyes.

"It's overwhelming, looking around, seeing all this," she shook her head.

"How about you tell me why you are here, Sharon," Andy offered, sitting forward in the chair, arms resting on his knees, looking at Sharon.

"Right," she nodded and opened her purse, "I found your spare pair of reading glasses on the floor by the coffee table. I guess they must have fallen," she said as she pulled them out of her bag and handed them to him. He eyed her.

"You know you could have given these to Rusty or Provenza," he offered. "I'm sure you didn't need to tail your son and stalk the house."

She nodded and she sighed as she looked up to the ceiling, "I guess I needed to see that you were alright. You've moved, retired, and we've-" she shook her head. "I needed to know you were alright."

He huffed, "Well, here I am," he offered. "Everything you imagined, Sharon?"

She sighed and stood, "I have to go," she nodded and walked quickly to the door.

"Sharon-," he started to say, but she shook her head.

"I have to go," she nodded again, and quickly opened the door and scurried to her car. Andy sat in his chair, head in his hands, and sighed. Soon, the house was eerily quiet.


	11. Chapter 11

When Andy finally stood after his brief encounter with Sharon, he sighed as he looked at the reading glasses she had brought him. He picked them up to move to his reading area; he, like Sharon had a couple pairs of glasses he kept around the house, especially since he didn't use them all the time. He went to lock the door, after Sharon had run out. It was then, he noticed she was still in her car, her head over her steering wheel, and she was obviously crying. With a sigh, he walked slowly to her car, hands in his pockets.

As he approached her car, he tried to decide how he wanted to handle it. The easiest way, well, sort of, would have been to have ignored her sitting in the car and stayed in the house. He wasn't sure that was easy, but it would have been less drama, that's for sure. He acted instead of thinking further and opened the door, startling her. He tugged on her hand, pulling her out and into his embrace. He closed his eyes and sighed, as he smelled her hair and felt her in his embrace. He was expecting her to tense up, but she surprised him and quickly relaxed.

He held her for a few moments, kissing her hair, and he could tell she was crying. His shirt was getting wet. He sighed again, "Sharon, you are torturing yourself."

She pulled back and looked up at him, shrugging, "I guess that's what I do." Sharon squeezed his hand, pulled away, and she got back into the car. With one last swipe of the tears, she started the car and drove away. Andy stood in his front yard, again, this time watching her go.

The rest of his weekend was uneventful, and late Sunday evening, he spoke to Melody on the phone to confirm the few things that had been discussed for the boys' room. She assured him the room would be finished and soon. He'd be glad to have that off his plate. His week was somewhat better, as he started to get into his retirement groove. He did spend a lot of Wednesday at the DA's office, going through a court deposition for an upcoming case. He was fine with that. Had things not gone so badly with Sharon, he might still be at work, even on light duty. He had to admit it was nice not to be in that work limbo anymore. The light duty annoyed him to no end, the only positive being he spent all day at the station with Sharon. Now, he was clearly retired, and even spending a day at the DA's office wasn't so bad. It made him still feel like he was on the job, so to speak. While there, he'd taken Rusty to lunch, and the two had discussed the weekend barbecue at his house, the combination retirement part and housewarming.

"Gus is going to make a few dishes and a couple desserts," Rusty offered, as the two had a quick lunch. Andy nodded in return.

"Thank him for me, please. You and Gus are welcome to come by anytime that morning. I told the team to come around noon," he offered.

"We will," he said. "I'm guessing we'll be over around 10 to help you setup."

"I'm not trying to drag you into this, but did you know your mom stopped by the other day?" Andy asked.

Rusty's eyes went wide, "No. I didn't tell her where you lived, I promise." Andy put up a hand, indicating he knew that, and he gave Rusty a look. Rusty shook his head, sighing, "She followed me, didn't she?"

Andy shrugged as he grunted, "Sounds like it. It's okay. She was bound to figure it out sooner or later."

"What did she want? Wait, did she come by on Saturday afternoon? She was so weird that night, distant," he noted.

Andy nodded, "Yeah, she did." Rusty frowned trying to make sense of it.

"What did she want?" he asked. "Obviously not to get back together because you aren't."

"To bring me my reading glasses," he said with a frown to Rusty, and Rusty nodded, understanding that was just a ruse.

"Well, I haven't told her about the party, so she shouldn't just stop by again," Rusty said. "I'm sorry, Andy."

"Me too, Rusty, and again, I don't want to drag you into this, but I felt like you should know what she's been up to lately." Rusty just nodded in agreement. Hopefully, the weekend party would be something the team could enjoy and celebrate with Andy.

Saturday was spent getting things ready for the team to come over. They were off this weekend, the main reason Andy had picked it, or rather, Provenza had told him to have the party. He came in from the pool area to find Rusty and Gus getting the last of the things out of the fridge and onto the patio. It was a beautiful day, so the main party was going to be outside. The pool was ready, and Mark and Andy's grandkids couldn't wait to get in it. He smiled looking at the pool, glad it was going to get some use today. He'd been trying to swim some light laps in it; he knew it was good for his health, but the laughter the pool would see today would be as good for his healing as anything.

Soon, the party was in full swing, and everyone was having a good time. It felt good for Andy to laugh; it felt good to have friends at his new home. He excused himself for a moment, heading toward his bathroom. He caught himself, surprised, when he reached his bedroom doorway.

"I feel like I'm Goldilocks right now," he started in a very sad, monotone voice, "why are you sitting on my bed?" he asked. He'd been surprised to see Sharon, her back to him, sitting on the side of the bed, her side, he sighed to himself, noting she was staring down at the floor or out the window, hard to say because both in the line of sight she had.

His presence must have startled her; she hadn't heard him walk in, and he saw her jump slightly, but then he heard her speak, "I wanted to see how it felt."

"How what felt, Sharon?" he asked, walking slowly over toward her. He put his hands in his pockets and moved near her line of sight, now standing in the doorframe to his bathroom.

She finally looked up to him, eyes clear for once, and she let out a sigh, "I wanted to see how it felt to be here, in the house. I saw some of the house the other day, but I didn't see the bedroom. I wondered if you had picked out the set I liked," she explained. "Obviously, you did," he nodded to the room.

He nodded, listening to her, "So, you came into the house, on a day that coincidently the team is here, to see if I had our favorite bedroom furniture set?" he put it all together for her as she'd explained in pieces.

She nodded, biting her lip and running her hand over the comforter. She looked up at him and shrugged, "It doesn't make sense; I know."

He rubbed his hand over his face and moved to sit beside her on the bed. Now, both were looking toward the window, backs to the door, "None of this has made sense, Sharon. I've been going over and over everything in my head the last almost two months, and none of this makes sense. I don't know where everything went so wrong."

"I do," she squeaked out, "It went wrong with me. I messed up most of this. You've done nothing but love me, be patient with me, and wait for me every step of the way. No guy, in the middle of a proposal would say that he'd still wait if I wasn't quite ready, and you did. I screwed this up."

"So, why'd you do that? Sharon, you know I love you, and I know you love me."

She nodded, her first admission since that night, "All that anxiety, it wasn't that. I was in love with you and so much so I almost couldn't, almost can't," she corrected herself, "see straight. I never had that with Jack, and with you, sending you away has made me more miserable, and that feeling has been replaced with the worst heartache I can't even being to describe. I thought I didn't love you enough; I figured out that I love you so much I can't function without you."

He sighed as he gripped her fingers in his, "Sharon, I've told you what I want, and I can't change that."

She pulled her hand out of his, and instead, she wrapped her arm around his back, snuggling into his side. His arm gripped her shoulder, as they continued to sit, "I thought I knew what I wanted, but I was wrong," she frowned. "I regret that very much because I hurt you; I hurt our kids, and even the team. I set the wheels in motion that got things so off track. I'm sorry for that."

He nodded as he said quietly, "Me too." She sighed into his side. "I feel like I'm past the point of telling you what I want. Ball is in your court."

She sat up, turned to look at him, and said," "Okay. I want you to stop by the condo later. I'm not going to disrupt your party further; it was wrong of me to come by now, but I guess I really don't have an excuse. I felt like I should be here for you; it's your retirement, Andy. I should have been there by your side, and I'm not. I've known you most of the years you've been working, and I should be right there, but I am not. I'm going to leave because I'm not going to make things awkward for the team and the kids. I'm asking you to stop by later, after your party, please," she said as she stood. "I would appreciate it," she nodded, and touched his shoulder, as she grabbed her purse and left. He hung his head, noticing she'd left him a note on the nightstand. He sighed as he fingered the note, wondering why this was so out of hand.


	12. Chapter 12

Andy stood at the door, deciding if this was a bad idea. He fingered the key, his key, willing himself to put it in the lock. He hadn't seen the key in a few weeks. When he'd moved out of the condo, he'd left it on Sharon's nightstand for her. He wouldn't be needing it. When Sharon left his house earlier in the afternoon, she'd left the key with her note, a simple note, in her beautiful handwriting, saying, "Please, come by when you can," with his key in it. Funny, a key he'd only had over the last year and a half or so meant so much to him, or it had. He hated leaving it and walking away from it when he'd moved out, but he knew, at that point, it wasn't his to keep anymore, just as Sharon, when she'd said no wasn't his to love anymore either. That was still going to take time, if he ever fully realized that. He wasn't sure why Sharon left the key; he figured that she might be in deep thought on the balcony or something and didn't want to miss hearing him knock, no matter when and if he came, so she'd left the key. Because, to be honest, he had to talk himself into going to see her. Sure, he wanted to, but he didn't know what would come of it. He'd had enough hurt for a lifetime at this point, and he literally didn't know how much more his heart, in all aspects, could take.

He'd made it this far, so he figured now or never. Andy took a deep breath, felt the cold metal of the key in his hand, and put it in the lock. He looked around, expecting to see Sharon somewhere in view. A sweep of the place, and she wasn't there. He knew she was there, at least. He'd parked in his old spot downstairs in the parking garage, next to her, and her car was there. The condo was silent, and he didn't see her. Andy almost tripped over the bags by the front door, very un-Sharon like. He frowned looking at them, trying to figure out what was going on.

"Sharon?" he called out, checking the kitchen and again the balcony, no sign of her. He didn't think she was there, but he had to check. He started down the hall to their bedroom, scratch that, now Sharon's bedroom, and he called again, "Sharon?" This time, he heard a rustling in her room, and he stepped in. It was a mess, but she wasn't in sight. The closet light was on, and he knew from experience that even with a small condo, that closet was huge, and you couldn't hear much inside of it.

"Sharon?" he called again, now more toward the closet. He didn't want to scare her. This time, he heard movement, so he stepped back, into the doorway so she had room to get out.

"Andy?" she called out as she made her way out of the closet. When she saw him, her eyes met his, and she gave him a sad smile, "You came."

"Sharon, why did you want me to come over, and why is this place such a mess? You hate messes," he said as he took another look around. As he said that, he looked back to her. She was a mess too. Her immaculate appearance was anything but at the moment. She was in casual clothing, capri pants, sandals, and a t-shirt, but her hair was a mess. It looked like she'd clipped it up, but it was going everywhere. Her makeup was off, not that it mattered, but still, this wasn't Sharon.

Sharon moved the hair out of her face and touched his chest as she moved past him into the hall. He followed her only because she hadn't said a word since the 'You came' comment, and he was utterly confused at the moment. He almost ran into her, as she stopped near the front door; he'd thought she was walking to the kitchen or dining room to sit and talk, but she stopped by the door, and in one quick swoop, she grabbed the bag, turned, and thrust it into his hand.

"Sharon, what is going on? Would you please talk to me?" he said, now agitated. "I'm almost beginning to wonder why I came."

Sharon delicately touched his wrist with her hand, and she looked up to him, "I'm going home."

He raised an eyebrow at her, looking around, and then he caught on, "Your running again? That's just great, Sharon, really mature. So, you need a ride to the airport? Running now to your parents, I guess? Emily didn't feel sorry for you, so now you're going to people who may? Sharon, I know Rusty was busy this evening, but I don't think I can be your ride to the airport. If this is goodbye, then let's get it over here," he sighed, putting the bag down.

She nodded, looking down, and then looking up at him, "Andy, I've made enough of a mess of things; I am more than aware of that. I'm done doing that now. I'm going home, and you aren't going to stop me. You can either go and load my bags into the car now, or I'll do it myself. Andy, my home is with you."


	13. Chapter 13

Andy zoned in on her, trying to catch up to what she'd said. Sharon just stood there, waiting for him to respond. He looked down at the pile of bags, noting he'd missed that there were additional suitcases by the couch that he must have scanned over when looking for her. Some detective he was; he'd glossed over evidence.

"Why are my suitcases back here?" he finally asked, forming a coherent sentence. "Did you get these from the house?" looking at the pile. He had navy blue bags, and Sharon had plum colored ones. Both sets were packed.

Sharon pursed her lips, and she looked guiltily at him, as she shrugged, "I needed more bags for my stuff. I got them today, before you found me in the bedroom."

Andy, with now a dazed look, looked to Sharon again, and he saw her messing with her hair again. It kept falling in her face, and she was moving it out of the way. Then, he zoned in on that, "Where did you get that?" he said almost harshly, looking sternly at her.

She met his gaze, "It's mine, isn't it?"

He narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms, "Let me get this straight. While I was hosting a party for the team, a team of the most elite detectives in Los Angeles-your team, you were breaking and entering. If that's not bad enough, we can now add burgulary to the list," he grumbled throwing his hands up.

Sharon pursed her lips and crossed her arms, looking up at him, "I can see this looks bad, but that wasn't the intent. Plus, I can argue it's not stealing if I'm returning the items to their rightful place," she said very deliberately.

"Oh, so," he waved at her, "you're returning that?" he asked.

"No, it's not stealing if it's mine," she said. "You really are the one who stole it when you took it when you moved out. I got back what's mine."

He sighed, looking up at the ceiling, "You are impossible!" he roared. "How did you even find that, and by the way, how long were you at the house?"

Sharon waited for his rant to stop, and she looked into his eyes, "Andy, I know you, don't forget that; I know your habits and thoughts. How did I find it? It was in the nightstand, my nightstand, there to be exact. It was the only thing in my nightstand. I knew you wouldn't put it in yours; that would be too painful a reminder since you are always in your nightstand getting sports magazines out. It was the first place I looked. It's mine, and it was where I thought-my nightstand, close, but far enough away it wasn't a daily reminder to you. My ring, my nighstand," she proclaimed.

"So, you just decided to put it on?" he said, exasperated.

"Yes, I did. You gave it to me. What, are you going to take it back now?" she challenged. "I'm not taking it off, and you wanted me to wear it!"

"Before you said no, never!" He closed his eyes, and he let out his breath. He could feel the anger building up inside. When he opened his eyes, she was still looking at him, waiting for him to answe-to continue, "You broke my heart."

Sharon's stance changed; those words caused her expression and stance to soften, and she said quietly as she nodded, "I know. I'm going to keep apologizing for that from now on, but I'm trying very hard to fix things."

He raised one eyebrow at her as he spoke, "So, this is you fixing things? This is the best Captain Raydor, one of the smartest people I know, this is the best you could do?"

She sighed, as she dropped her head, her hand again, the one with her ring on it, sweeping hair out of her face again, "You commented before that I torture myself. I realize that, and I'm trying not to do that anymore. I'm still adjusting to someone loving me. Well, I know you love me. I'm adjusting to just how much I love you," she raised her head, a sad look on her face. "I realize now that I wasn't having panic attacks about you being here. I was freaking out because I was starting to rely on you, need you here. I've never needed anything before; I've always done everything on my own. I need you now, that much I know."

"Saying no, not ever, isn't the way to go about that," he sighed. "Sharon, that night, that's what you said, and after you didn't want much discussion on the subject, other than to say we weren't happening, you suggested I go stay with Provenza or Nicole. You stopped any communication because then you took off!" he exclaimed.

"I thought some clarity would help," she admitted. "It did, actually, just not in the way I planned. The clarity I got only made me see that everything I had done that night was wrong. You just wanted to love me. I pushed you away, told you never, and I refused to talk to you, to try and explain what I was feeling. Looking back, I was feeling, I am feeling totally in love with you," she whispered as she fought back tears.

He sighed and said, "Sharon, I thought you already knew that."

She looked away, "I did, well, I thought I did. I just didn't know how much. I thought I knew, but all the mixed feelings I thought I was having was honestly me not wanting to ever let you go. I realize that now. I'm not staying here another day without you. When I got back and found out you retired," she shook her head, "I know we talked about you doing that, not wanting to be a glorified desk monkey, to spend more time with Nicole's boys, I know we discussed it. I wasn't surprised in a way, but it was just another kick in the gut that I wouldn't see you each day. I was sick that day, in and out of the bathroom, because it further solidified how I couldn't let you go."

"Then, why in the world did you wait so long, Sharon? It's been two months! Don't you know how this has torn me up? It's torn up our kids too. This wasn't just some decision that affected you alone; it affected our whole family, our friends, our work! Even the boys have been going nuts asking where you have been, and trying to explain it to little boys, where Grandma is, it's been torture! Why?"

She shook her head, "I don't have an answer," she shrugged. "I guess I tried to convince myself that I'd hurt you too much for you to want me back. I even told myself that the other day when I stopped by the house. I told myself that I just needed to make sure you were okay. If you were, I was going to try and let you go. Then, I saw our house," she wiped the tears away. "I saw all the love, the hopes, the dreams, the future we wanted. I saw the boys running through the place just like we'd talked. I had seen Rusty stop by, just like we wanted. I saw all the furniture we picked out, everything we wanted for our lives. You were living it without me, and I knew then I was so off base. I had figured I was doing you a favor, not causing you any additional heartache by trying to let you go, but I realized recently that was stupid. I know what I want, and I'm going to go after it, if it's the last thing I do," she stated.

Andy sighed as he rubbed the back of his head. He hated seeing her cry, seeing her upset, but she'd brought on a lot of this. He was hurting too, so much, but he also knew both could end their misery.

"Sharon, I can't do this again," he sighed, and as she looked at him horrified, he clarified himself. "I mean, I can't lose you again. I can't have you flip out on me. You put that ring on; do you understand what that truly means?"

Her eyes met his, and she spoke, "Look at this," she motioned him toward the kitchen area. "You need to see this, to see that I know exactly what I am doing and want now."


	14. Chapter 14

"Two things," Sharon said as she walked toward the kitchen, turning to make sure Andy was following her, "well, three."

"Three?" Andy asked, now confused.

"Yes," she said, turning now to look at him, her hands on the counter. "First, this," she handed him a dish. He eyed it. "Cobbler. Your favorite."

"You think making me my favorite cobbler is going to win me over?" he asked. She shrugged.

"No, but I thought you would eat it when you read this," she said, as she handed him something else. "This is the second thing," she handed him a bound book.

"What is this?" he asked, eyebrows raised, handling the bound book.

"My journal," she pursued her lips. "No one else has ever read it, but I started it a few years ago before we were even dating. It's all about you."

His eyes grew huge, "How have I never seen it? I lived here with you! You kept a journal?" Andy questioned.

She nodded, a small shrug, "I don't have a lot of close friends. You've been it. The only person I ever talked to about problems the last several years has been you, Andy," she admitted. "I couldn't talk to you about you, so I wrote it all down. All the crazy rants and antics-all there. I want you to read it; you need to read it, please."

Andy accepted the journal, doing a quick scan of its contents. He saw a lot of scrawl, some block lettering where she must have been frustrated, some of her beautiful handwriting, all of it, Sharon's thoughts about him, about them, about everything going on in her head over the last couple years. He looked to her, "Sharon, I don't have to read this," he gave her a sad smile and tried to hand it back to her.

"You do," she nodded, pushing it back to him. "I really hurt you, and you don't trust my behavior right now for good reason. Read that and see that there is so much love there. Rereading it the past week, I want to hit myself on the head for being the biggest idiot around. We were dating long before we called it that, and honestly, you had reasons to propose to me well before you did. I put the brakes on, scared of what I didn't realize, when I was so head over heels. Please, Andy, read it."

Andy nodded, holding it, "Ahh, I think I will go then," he explained to her, "little overwhelming. "Can I take this with me and go home?"

She looked at him, surprised, but then she gave him a nod, "Of course. Can I-Can I come over later, please?"

He nodded, "Fine," and he picked up the two items and nodded to her as he left.

Sharon looked to the third time, nodding to herself, and went back to packing. They would discuss the third thing later, at home.


	15. Chapter 15

He heard her come in the front door much later. He was back in the kitchen, sitting at the table, not wanting to admit he'd eaten a good amount of the cobbler. Normally, she would fuss at him for eating that much of something unhealthy, but he had a feeling since he hadn't had any in over a couple months and the current situation, she'd let it slide. He'd been doing a lot of thinking, maybe too much. He got up from the table after hearing her softly shut the front door.

"Hi," she nodded to him, noticing he seemed much more relaxed. That calmed her because she didn't want this mess to stir up his heart issues. She stood, looking apprehensive, purse clutched in her hands in front of her, almost dangling on the floor.

"Hi," he nodded back to her. "It's late."

She nodded, meeting his eyes, "I know. I'm sorry. I wanted to give you time alone, but I was serious when I said I wanted to stop by."

"I haven't read it yet," he admitted. "I tried, but I couldn't open it. I wasn't sure if you had changed your mind about stopping by. I was just about to head to bed."

She nodded, "Okay, well, then I'll-"

"You can stay-in the guest room," he explained. "I know you are a police captain, but I still worry about you. You know I never like the idea of you out like this, walking through the parking garage of the condo this late," he explained.

She met his eyes, "Okay, then," she offered him a slight smile. "Thank you. I would like that very much."

He started to show her to the room, noting she wasn't right behind him, "Sharon," he nodded to the room.

Her eyes expressed confusion, "I thought this was the guest room?" she looked to him in confusion, as the door was closed.

"Not setup yet," he pulled her toward the other room, "you can stay here."

She threw a look to him, "The boys' bunkbeds?" she nodded to the room.

"Yup, night," he kissed the top of her head and walked down the hall. As he was almost out of earshot, he said, "Don't fall off the top bunk." Sharon just stood there, dumbfounded at the entire scene.

As the sun came up, Andy stood in his backyard looking at the pool and the sun coming up over the horizon. He was on his third, no maybe fourth cup of coffee? He couldn't remember. He'd had a lot of coffee, and he hadn't slept all night.

He was in the middle of another sip of coffee when he heard, "Morning."

He turned slowly, no question to the source of the greeting, "Morning," he said softly, trying not to stare at her. That was hard because even with her tousled hair, early morning "Sharon look" he loved so much, all he wanted to do was stare at her, the woman he'd loved for years and years, still did, as he knew he couldn't deny.

She walked down the back steps, also holding a mug of coffee. His mugs were fine, but he really missed her green ones, another thing that just felt like home. Sharon looked around at the early morning light, the way it reflected off the pool, and she just offered a small smile.

"Its so beautiful and peaceful out here in the morning," she said, smiling at the surroundings. "This makes the house even more charming."

Andy nodded, "Yes, unless the boys are here early in the morning," he offered a slight chuckle. She nodded in agreement. The silence was awkward.

"Andy, I-" she started to day, but he cut her off.

"Did you sleep well?" he asked.

She bit her lip, whatever she had to say, would wait, and she finished, "I slept better in the boys' bunk beds than I have at the condo in two months. Apparently, even being in your vicinity helps me sleep better; it calms me. I never would describe bunk beds as restful." She looked to him; they were standing side by staring toward the pool until now, but she looked to him, "Did you sleep ok?"

He finally met her eyes, "I haven't slept. I read your journal," he admitted.

"You were up all night reading that? Oh, Andy," she sighed. "I'm sorry that kept you up all night."

"it only took me a couple hours to read it; then, I was just up," he explained.

She nodded, "I hope it helped."

He sighed, "Sharon, it didn't tell me anything I already didn't know," as he turned to her. "I guess it just showed me that while you are the boss at work, I should most definitely be the boss at home, our personal lives."

Sharon's eyes went wide, but before she had tears form again said, "I think that's very true," she nodded. "I'm awful at relationships," she shrugged.

"I'm aware," he frowned at her. "I'm very aware, yet somehow here we are."

She pursed her lips, nodding, "Andy, as you read, I am very sorry for what I have done. You, as much as anyone, knows what it means to make amends, as well how much one's forgiveness is needed."

"Sharon," he shook his head, finally turning fully to her-he sighed, "Sharon, I have thought over this and over this. I want to be mad at you for all of this. The spiteful me wants to punish you for all the pain, the hurt over the last two months-to me, to our lives, our kids," he sighed again. Sharon looked down, biting her lip, "but-" he stopped.

She looked up, fingering her ring on her hand, "But?" she asked with a hopeful look in her eye.

"But, I can't. I won't do that anymore. We keep losing time, and if my heart attack, my blood clot have taught us anything, it's that time is short. It's like your journal. You wrote about the blood clot, saying how you hated holding back, hated not stopping me as I went to surgery to tell me you loved me. I don't know how much time we have, but I don't want any more regrets. You wrote that when we went to the boys' recital, that second year with Rusty and Nicole, that you wished you'd kissed me again that night. That, after you got over thr freaked out comments the kids made about dating or not, and when I gave you that simple kiss when I brought you home, you wrote you wished you'd kissed me again. Where would things be now if we'd started then? We wasted another what-six months? I don't want that, Sharon, as much as I want to punish you for all this. I just want to love you," he admitted.

Sharon moved quickly, taking his face in her hands and kissed him. It was the first time they'd kissed in two months, and both were desperate to hold onto it, "I love you so much," she said, as she pulled back slightly, her eyes meeting his. "I know I looked erratic and crazy yesterday, but I meant everything I said. I want to be at home here with you, for good. I do want to be married to you, to have our crazy family in and out of here, all together."

He grabbed her wrists lightly, looking at her still, "It's going to take some time," he nodded to her.

She leaned her head against him, "I know," she sighed. "I need to show you the last thing, though," she said as she pulled something out of her back pocket. She had slept in her clothes and was still in them. "Here," she handed it to him.

He scanned what she handed him, and he raised an eyebrow, "Sharon?"

She nodded, "I'm serious, Andy, very."

He held up the packet, "There is no going back."

"Good," she nodded. "The only going back I want is to get my stuff and to turn over the key when it's sold."

He nodded reading over it, "Well, maybe you should get a shower, and we can continue talking about this," he suggested.

She pursed her lips, "With all my packing, I didn't bring anything here. I just wanted to see you."

He put his arm around her back, turning the, both toward the house, "Sharon, your stuff is here, at least everything you packed. That's what I did all night," he gave a small smile. "I would like to request we also bring over your dishes. I like them better than mine, and apparently the rest of your shoes. In all my in and out of the condo last night, I noticed you hadn't packed any of your shoes."

"You moved all my stuff?" she asked, completely shocked.

He shrugged and continued, "While you were having oh so sweet dreams in the boys' bunk beds, I read your journal and moved your stuff, yes. As I said, I want to be angry, but," he shrugged, "even now, I still love you too much. Your stuff, your mess, is all over the master bedroom right now, and we don't have anywhere to sleep until it's put away."

They climbed the stairs to the house, and she added, "I guess I will be busy today, then. Oh, gosh, Rusty?"

He rolled his eyes at her, "Sharon, you are a package deal, always have been."

"Well, we haven't discussed this with him. Andy, what about where he's going to stay?"

He smirked at her, "Sharon, the guest room is his room. He already picked out the bedding in it, you know, because he'd always planned to stay here some, like when you work late. You forget he comes by here all the time already. I think it's safe to say that the kids, who would never admit it, picked sides during all this. Rusty will be more than happy to move his stuff here, trust me. We talk all the time."

She grimaced, "Wait, last night, I thought you said I couldn't use the guest room?" she asked as they entered the house. "Andy, did you secretly torture me last night making me stay in the bunk beds?"

He smirked, "Well, I did have to punish you in some way. Let's give Rusty a call, and maybe we can get our family back on track."

* * *

Ok, I cannot believe how many comments I had about what Andy should do with Sharon! Thank you for all the reviews. I feel like no solution here will satisfy everyone, but I'm trying to remember that these two idiots have loved each other for years. As Sharon points out, Andy knows something about making amends. As Andy points out, life is short...still, he tried to make her suffer just a bit. Hope this satisfies most people! One chapter to go!


	16. Chapter 16

First of all, thanks to everyone who has struck with this story! I know it was painful, but hopefully worthwhile. I really appreciate all the reviews, messages,and comments. Here's the final chapter!

* * *

He was putting the finishing touches on his homemade lasagna, when a text message drew his attention.

"Buyer agreed. Sold."

He grinned at the message, trying to think of just the right reply. Quickly, he typed out one.

"Good thing you recently relocated."

He waited to see if he would get a reply, knowing things were busy. Life itself had been busy the last few days. It felt like it had been a lifetime, but it had not even been a week since he and Sharon finally figured out their future. Sharon was finally home, in their home, and her text confirmed that she would soon only have one home. The condo had sold; neither expected it to take long. This was LA, and the condo had a spectacular view. Sharon's "third thing," the listing for the condo, Sharon had taken care of with the realtor just last Saturday morning before he'd found her breaking and entering in the house. What a crazy, busy time they had in the last had moved; Rusty had moved, and the condo had sold.

Andy had wanted to make sure she was okay selling the condo, her place, Rusty's place, a place not touched by Jack. As Sharon had told him in the yard last Sunday morning, she was absolutely sure selling the condo is what she wanted. Asking Rusty his feelings on selling the condo was part of the deal, and as Andy suspected, Rusty was more than happy to move. Andy chucked as he though back to Sunday afternoon; Rusty had come to the house after Andy had called him, thrilled to learn that his parents had worked out everything finally, and by Sunday evening, he like Sharon, had moved most of his stuff. You would have through Sharon and Rusty were biologically related; they both were efficient packers.

Sharon's realtor had people in and out of the condo for two days before three offers came in. The best one was over asking, a cash offer, and would close asap. It was going to a recently widowed woman, someone whom both Sharon and Andy were glad was getting the place to start over. Sharon, of course, knew the condo was a good place to rebuild one's live and find happiness. Rusty, for different reasons, agreed with that as well.

Aside from the kids, Andy and Sharon had not told the team yet about the week's developments. That was what tonight was all about. The team was on call Friday-Sunday, so this night, Thursday night, was their only assured night off for several days. Andy and Sharon didn't want to wait any longer to tell the team; they were friends, family really, and above all, they'd seen everything fall apart and needed to see the happy ending.

So, tonight, the team was coming to dinner. Andy was making an Italian feast, suggested by Provenza. As he worked on the salad, he chuckled at the memory of inviting Provenza.

"Flynn, what is this text-Dinner Thursday, be there?" he grumbled into the phone Sunday evening when he and Sharon had finally settled on the couch for a few minutes. She had to move away to suppress her chuckle.

"I'd say it's pretty obvious-come to dinner on Thursday. Bring Patrice too. Listen, I enjoyed seeing all of you Saturday, and I know you have a long weekend. Free food, Provenza," he'd said.

Provenza grunted, "Only if you make lasagna, meat lasagna. Don't try to get me with any of your vegetarian junk."

So, now as Andy finished the final touches on the salad, he put it in the fridge alongside the two lasagnas (one meat and one vegetarian), a cheesecake, and he nodded to himself. The team was going to be surprised at the evening alright. Now, with the condo selling, they would have even more news to share.

"Andy?" he heard and with a bit of surprise, looked to the clock. He'd lost track of time, but it wasn't late. In fact, Sharon was early. "Hi," she smiled to him as she walked into the kitchen, shrugging out of her suit jacket.

"Hey gorgeous," he grinned to her, wiping his hands before pulling her in for a kiss. Last thing he wanted to do was to get pasta sauce on her beautiful clothing. He kissed her, grinning at her, as she smiled back at him.

"So, it seems to me we need to plan a wedding," she smiled brightly at him.

He nodded, "This is true, Captain. The deal to which we agreed was that we would use some of the condo sale money to pay for a very small wedding once it sold."

"Yes, and apparently time is ticking," she added.

"Well, if we must, I guess we will plan a wedding," he winked to her. "I also recall part of that deal stipulated part of the condo sale was going to be used to buy you a new car; Rusty gets yours since his is on its last leg, and you get a new one. Part of the money will be going toward law school tuition for someone who eats everything in this house-who shall remain nameless, and hmmm, with the now extra money we'll get for selling it over asking price, I think that money should go to a really nice honeymoon," he flashed a boyish grin at her.

"Hmm, is that so?" as she leaned against the counter, a look of mischief on her face. "Well," she tried not to smile, but was failing miserably, "as you pointed out, you are the boss at home. I failed on that front, so Lieutenant, if that's how you feel, I guess we will just have to do that," she shrugged.

"I like how you think," he pointed at her. "I will have you note, I'm not the lieutenant at home."

"Oh," she feigned a look of surprise, "then, what should I call you? Boss?"

"Nope," he grinned. "Here, I'm Grandpa, and you are Grandma. I think I misspoke calling myself the boss of our personal life; turns out two small, energetic boys are the boss of both of us." Sharon burst out laughing, nodding in agreement. He and Sharon had talked about his retirement, and both were excited about it. Sharon admitted that losing her favorite lieutenant wasn't easy, but it was better for his health. Plus, he was going to make a point to have lunch with her once a week, at least, and he was now the primary on cooking duty at home. Cooking healthy meals at home was going to be better for both of them, and Rusty was thrilled to have home cooked meals all the time. He was also in grandpa mode Tuesday's and Thursday's as he watched the boys after school. Retirement wasn't looking so bad at all.

Sharon changed topics after looking at the clock, "The team should be here in about 20 minutes. I'm going to change."

"Need any help?" he teased.

"I still am trying to find all my stuff in our room," she flirted, "so, I suppose I should ask for help." He chased after her, causing her to laugh.

Promptly 20 minutes later, the doorbell rang, and Andy winked at Sharon as he said, "Showtime."

The two had discussed how they wanted to handle this, and they decided they would just act normally. Andy wasn't going to have some big speech. Sharon hadn't said anything at work, and as far as the team knew, she'd just coincidently let them off work early this evening, as they were going into a long weekend on call. Truth be told, Andy and Sharon were sure their friends would be thrilled. Sharon hung out in the kitchen, working on the food preparations.

Sharon chuckled as she heard Andy at the door with Provenza, "Why does it matter if my car is in the driveway? So what if I didn't put it in the garage?" Sharon laughed at Provenza from the kitchen. He would complain about having to park on the street instead of the premiere driveway spot Andy currently had. He'd given Sharon the garage spot, and even though they had a two-car garage, he had his workshop setup in the other area.

"I don't see why I have to park on the street when you are hogging the driveway. Is Rusty coming? Kid drives like a maniac, and if he sideswiped my car," he mumbled.

"He will park behind me," Andy waved. His car is small enough," he said and was interrupted by the rest of the team arriving. Sharon listened as they filtered in.

"Maybe Buzz has the right idea on that bike of his," Provenza continued to complain. "He doesn't need a parking place for that."

"it's good for your health, Lieutenant," Buzz told him.

"Smells good, Lieutenant," Julio said. "My mom was excited to have Mark to herself tonight to spoil him."

"Yeah, Patrice is having a girls' night, whatever that means. I guess it means she'll spend money," Provenza grumbled.

"Lieutenant, what is on the menu tonight?" Amy asked. "Coop's working, so I promised him leftovers."

"Judging by the smells, I would say Andy's famous lasagna, and I'm guessing both a vegetarian and a meat option," Mike stated. Sharon had to cover her mouth; Mike sounded like an authority, even on lasagna.

"Hey everybody," Sharon heard Rusty come in, and then he continued, "Andy, I'm just going to drop this down the hall," and he left. Sharon figured he had gestured to his backpack and was really going to his room to freshen up before dinner. He'd been instructed to the plan, and the team didn't seem to mind how easily he moved around the house.

"Flynn, he doing ok?" Sharon heard Provenza ask after Rusty had left the room.

Andy replied with, "Much better. Oh, where are my manners? Something to drink, everyone? I've got stuff in the kitchen," he added, and Sharon schooled herself, knowing it was showtime.

The team followed Andy into the kitchen, and when his eyes met Sharon's, he winked at her. She stood casually at the island Andy had put in, arms casually braced against it.

"Why hello, Lieutenant, everyone," she smiled brightly. "Something to drink?"

The jaw dropped expressions were everywhere, and Mike was the first to respond, "I did not see that coming."

Andy, who had made his way around the island, put his arm around Sharon's back, turned to the group, and with his boyish grin said to them, "I'm full of surprises."


End file.
